It’s not Confucius or Sun Tzu, but China’s homegrown Machiavelli, Han Fei, who guides and inspires the thinking of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Frequently peppering his speeches with Han Fei’s legalist school of philosophy, Xi Jinping's favourite philosopher once said, “It is not difficult to know a thing; what is difficult is to know how to use what you know.”
As the Chinese manipulate their way into fructifying the neologism of ‘Chinese Century’ (Zhongguo shiji), the oft-contradictory actions of the Chinese regime never fail to confound and shock the world with the expected and the unexpected, in equal measure. Deception is key – what is said is often not meant, and what is sometimes done is never spoken about!
What is clear is that the Chinaman makes copious amounts of notes pertaining to global events – the forever austere and wise Chinaman seeks to learn from others’ mistakes.